The Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) today condemned the mob protest and unruly behaviour that forced the Bar Council’s religious conversion forum to an abrupt end on Saturday.

“The forum was a frank, peaceful and amicable effort that should be encouraged,” JAG executive director Ivy Josiah.

She reiterated that the forum was to seek clarification and a just solution pertaining to the conflict between civil and syariah laws and it is not about questioning Islam.

“In a multiracial democratic nation such as Malaysia, the government and civil society must at all times encourage open dialogue and discussion in a peaceful, informative and sincere manner. This will aid in establishing a deeper understanding amongst the rakyat,” Josiah said in a statement released.

JAG also condemns despicable acts by certain unknown parties who threw kerosene bombs into the former home of Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenivasan, which is now the residence of Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil. Two petrol bombs were also found outside the Bar’s auditorium premises where the forum was held on Saturday.

JAG urges the government to take firm stand to allow citizens to have democratic spaces for open dialogues and act against mob rule.